KATHMANDU: Three people died when a private plane crashed into a helicopter while taking off from the Tenzing Hillary airport in Lukla near Mount Everest, 125 km northeast of Kathmandu. on Sunday

The twin Otter plane of Summit Air was not carrying any passenger as it was departing. It skidded off while take-off and collided with two parked helicopters.

Two people died on the spot and another died in a hospital in Kathmandu. The dead included two security guards who were standing nearby and the pilot.

An investigation has begun. Airport officials said the weather was good, and flights resumed later in the day.

Lukla is known as the gateway to the Everest. The airport runway is short because of the mountainous terrain. It has been rated as the most dangerous airport by History Channel. There are also no radar or navigation devices. The pilots depend on what they can see from the cockpit. Porters used to walk up here from Kathmandu carrying expedition gear till the airport was constructed in 1964.

Lukla is a small town in Khumbu in Solukhumbu district in eastern Nepal. It is in the base camp located at a height of 2,860 metres. Climbers use it to reach up to the foothills of Everest.

In 2008, 18 people, including 12 Germans, were killed when their plane crashed while landing at Lukla.

Flying is hazardous in mountainous Nepal. In February last, seven people died in a helicopter crash, including the country's Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Rabindra Adhikari. They were travelling from the eastern district of Taplejung to Terathum.